Blu Homes Brave the Elements, Category 5 Hurricanes Included

ECO-FRIENDLY: The Element by Blu Homes is designed with value in mind while maximizing living space through the use of high ceilings and abundant windows. (Courtesy of Blu Homes)

Hurricane season is officially here, and home buyers along the coast, aware of potential threats, have safe and durable housing on the mind.

Earlier in September, green builder Blu Homes offered a prospect to set buyers’ minds at ease. The company announced an upgrade to its standard steel frame building system, already capable of withstanding winds of 120 mph—the mid range of a Category 3 hurricane.

Now with the upgraded, heavy-gauge steel frame, Blu Homes can survive 180 mph winds—Category 5 hurricanes. The houses can also be equipped with high-performance, hurricane-resistant windows.

According to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale—which measures a hurricane’s intensity—a Category 5 hurricane causes catastrophic damage.

In a Sept. 2 blog post, Blu Homes said, “As coastal dwellers, we at Blu are keenly aware of the wrath that hurricanes bring and the worry and stress they cause homeowners eager to protect their families and their property. Blu home products are designed and engineered with extreme weather conditions in mind.”

Based out of Massachusetts, with MIT and Harvard affiliations, Blu Homes Inc. offers Blu and mkDesigns homes—modern, prefabricated dwellings consisting of durable materials and green technologies.

After four to six weeks of construction time inside the controlled manufacturing environment, Blu Homes delivers a new house onsite, where the finishings are done in a week or two.

Blu and mkDesign homes range from $75,000 to approximately $360,000.

Setting them apart from other companies, Blu Homes utilizes a unique folding technology that allows for affordable transportation, wider spans, and for ceilings as high as 12 feet, creating open spaces with natural light that live big.

Customers are also drawn to Blu for the multitude of green features each home outfits. One example is the use of hybrid insulation, providing a tighter envelope and a home that is 40 to 60 percent more energy efficient—with 40 to 60 percent fewer carbon emissions than existing homes, according to HERS testing.

Blu currently ships within the United States, and a home costs around $5,000 to ship from Massachusetts to California. Plans are underway to extend their reach, and the Caribbean can expect Blu Homes on its shores by 2011.

“We were excited to discover Blu Homes, as their heavy-duty framing system creates a safer haven for families on our island,” Lorraine Soucy of Indigo Island Homes, distributor of Blu Homes in the Caribbean, said in a press release. “Their proprietary steel framing system also allows us to ship inexpensively to the Caribbean, making these products an obvious choice for this environment.”

Maura McCarthy, co-founder and VP of sales and marketing at Blu Homes, said, “Hurricanes can huff and puff but they won’t blow a Blu Home down!”